1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera using a recording medium in which an object image obtained through a photographing optical system is electronically developed, and more particularly, to a device for performing a white balance adjustment when the image recorded in the recording medium is read therefrom, or when the image is developed by the recording medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-2280 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,424,156, there is known a photographic material which is directly electronically developed so that the developed visible image can be immediately obtained. In this specification, such a recording medium is referred to as an electro-developing recording material, and an electronic still camera using the electro-developing recording material is referred to as an electro-developing type camera.
As a type of the electro-developing type camera which can take a color image, a construction, in which a single color image is obtained by a single shutter release operation, can be designed. In this construction, a color filter having red, green, and blue filter elements is disposed in front of the electro-developing recording medium.
However, the illuminance of light radiated on the electro-developing recording medium through each of the filter elements is not necessarily the same due to the characteristics of the color filter, or the characteristics of the illumination light radiated onto the object to be photographed. Therefore, it is necessary, for example, when reading the image from the electro-developing recording medium, to perform a white balance adjustment. Accordingly, the electro-developing type camera should be provided with a white balance sensor which detects the amount of energy of light of each of the color components, and a white balance signal processing circuit which converts the output signal of the white balance sensor to color temperature information, and carries out the white balance adjustment based on the color temperature information. Thus, the electric circuit construction in the electro-developing type camera should have a complex structure owing to the provision of a various kinds of circuits.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a white balance adjusting device by which an image having proper or natural colors is obtained, and to provide an electro-developing recording medium, which is suitable for the white balance adjusting device.
According to the present invention, there is provided an electro-developing recording medium by which a color image formed thereon is electronically developed, the electro-developing recording medium comprising a recording area for recording the color image, and a data area for recording optical information corresponding to the amount of exposure of each of the predetermined color components included in the color image, the data area being provided outside of the recording area.
Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a white balance adjusting device provided in an electro-developing type camera using an electro-developing recording medium by which a color image formed thereon is electronically developed, the electro-developing recording medium having a recording area for recording the color image, and a data area for recording optical information corresponding to the amount of exposure of each of the predetermined color components included in the color image, the data area being provided outside of the recording area, the white balance adjusting device comprising a first color filter, a second color filter, and a diffuser.
The first color filter is provided at a first position corresponding to the recording area, and has color filter elements of the predetermined color components. The second color filter is provided at a second position corresponding to the data area, and has color filter elements of the predetermined color components. The diffuser is provided at a position corresponding to the second color filter so that the illuminance of light led to the data area becomes uniform over the data area.
Furthermore, according to the present invention, there is provided a white balance adjusting device provided in an electro-developing type camera using an electro-developing recording medium by which a color image formed thereon is electronically developed, the white balance adjusting device comprising a first radiating processor, a second radiating processor, a colorimetry sensor, and a light amount control processor.
The first radiating processor radiates a light having a first color temperature onto the electro-developing recording medium. The second radiating processor radiates a light having a second color temperature, which is different from the first color temperature, onto the electro-developing recording medium. The colorimetry sensor senses a color temperature of ambient light around an object which is to be photographed by the electro-developing type camera. The light amount control processor controls the amount of light radiated by the first and second radiating processors, in accordance with the color temperature detected by the colorimetry sensor, so that a white balance adjustment for the color image developed by the electro-developing recording medium is performed.